Duke University - Chanticleer Yearbook (Durham, NC)

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EDICATION ' He just walked into the crowd, and he didn ' t say a word, not a word, and everybody just left. Gosh. ' Now we ask you, what could one rather small man who was unarmed do that two or more armed towers of campus legality could not do? Simple. He could break up a near riot that started when two campus po- licemen tried to break up a simple game of quad ball. He had the respect of the man . . . This statement from a Chronicle editorial exempli- fies the esteem which is held by the student body for Dean Robert B. Cox. For fifteen years he has served as Dean of Undergraduate Men of Duke University. He is closer to the students than any other member of the administration, and is a personal friend to any who seek his help or advice. His main official duty is to serve as advisor to undergraduate men in all non- academic matters. This duty includes approving social functions, advising organizations, keeping activity rec- ords, giving personal counsel, and the unpopular task of handling disciplinary cases. On many occasions he is called out of bed at 3: 00 in the morning to help a stu- dent in distress. He is often the only person to whom one may turn with a personal problem, and in many cases his advice has had a great effect on the later life of the man. In addition to his other duties, Dean Cox is advisor to all pre-med and pre-dental students, and is often instrumental in placing these men in med or dental schools, since his own recommendation is highly re- spected by schools throughout the country. As advisor to fraternities, Dean Cox has for many years stood for the fraternal system on the Duke Cam- pus, even though at times this has placed him in dis- agreement with other members of the administration. He is, in fact, active in his own fraternity in that he is a Province Chief of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity, and is advisor to the local chapter. Originally from Bolivar, Tennessee, Dean Cox at- tended Peabody College where he received his A.M. degree in 1926. After teaching at East Tennessee State College for several years, he came to Duke as Dean in 1945, and has served in this capacity since that time. For this service we of the 1960 CHANTICLEER, on behalf of the Student Body, dedicate this book to the man who is truly our Great White Father.